Joint Effort (a McRoll in the REAL World story)
by sammy1026
Summary: Lea has a problem on the island that will take a combined effort to fix.
1. Chapter 1

_Mari & Ilna-you guys are the absolute best! Thank you for EVERYTHING! _

_REAL Worlders-you guys are awesome. Thanks for all the support and encouragement._

* * *

 **Joint Effort**

Catherine looked up from her desk as the soft knock on the door was followed by her assistant Jen stepping into her office. "The governor needs you in an 11:00 AM meeting that was just added to her schedule. She said to allow _at least_ an hour. Do you want me to cancel your 11:30 with Senator Perkins or push it until after lunch?"

"Senator Perkins needs our infrastructure project proposals before his committee gets together this afternoon so 11:30 was already cutting it close. Call over to Marliyah's office and see if she can cover for me." Catherine extracted a manila folder from the top drawer of her desk and held it out towards Jen. "HDOT just got back to me with some updated figures for the flood damage repairs. Can you make sure she gets these before Senator Perkins arrives, please?"

"Will do."

"Did Lea say what this new meeting is about?" Catherine asked.

Jen shook her head. "Not a word. Just that it's top priority."

"Any chance it's good news?"

"That wasn't the impression I got." Jen smiled sympathetically. "I'll have lunch waiting for you when you get back."

* * *

Catherine arrived at Lea's office exactly as 11:00 and was waved straight in. When she entered, she found Lea sitting on the couch with a very concerned look on her face, documents spread out on the coffee table in front of her. Seated in the chair across from her was Commander Carl Gosnell who headed up the security division at Pearl. He'd arrived a year or so after she left so she'd never worked with him directly, but he had an excellent reputation. Carrie had nothing but good things to say about him after they worked together on a project the previous year.

"Catherine, thanks for coming." Lea said. "Sorry to throw a monkey wrench into your morning plans but this really can't wait. Do you know Commander Gosnell?"

"Only by reputation," Catherine replied. "I've heard great things."

"I could say the same." Gosnell stood and extended his hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you Lieutenant Rollins."

"The Commander contacted me several weeks ago and asked if I could intervene with HPD on what we believed was an isolated incident involving a young ensign," Lea said. Gosnell retook his seat and Catherine sat down on the couch beside the governor. "At the time we thought that was the end of the matter but apparently it wasn't."

She nodded towards Commander Gosnell who picked up the story.

"At the end of December, a young ensign, Ilias Bajraktari, stationed at Pearl was arrested by HPD on charges of bringing a large crate containing drugs and guns back from Afghanistan when he returned from deployment." Gosnell handed Catherine a folder containing a copy of the warrant and other arrest documents. "The HPD discovered the crate totally by accident when they raided a warehouse in Honolulu. Unfortunately, the warehouse was rented under a false name so we weren't able to trace the owner."

As Catherine read the papers Commander Gosnell continued.

"Ensign Bajraktari insisted he was innocent. He has an exemplary service record. His crewmates backed him up. According to his commanding officer he was the last person who would be involved in any sort of illegal activity. So, we launched our own investigation."

"What did you find out?" Catherine asked.

"That the ensign was telling the truth." Gosnell pointed to the papers spread out on the table in front of Lea. "The drugs were definitely shipped from Afghanistan and they were definitely shipped through official channels under the ensign's name, but he was not the one who shipped them."

"How does that even happen?" Catherine asked. She was very familiar with the specifics of shipping personal belongings home after deployment. The process involved all packages passing through multiple checkpoints before being loaded onto the cargo plane to ensure no contraband made its way to US soil. "Aren't all packages supposed to be x-rayed and run past contraband sniffing dogs?"

"They are." Gosnell nodded. "Which is why at first I was skeptical that the ensign wasn't involved. It definitely felt like an inside job. Then I took another look at the details of the flight the shipment came in on and noticed something." He pointed to a specific piece of paper. "There were 156 packages scanned onto the plane before it left Kabul. There were 158 packages unloaded when the plane reached Hawaii."

"So, someone added two extra packages at some point," Lea noted.

"Yes." Gosnell nodded. "I personally interviewed the flight crew and they told me they landed once on the trip home for refueling but the bay doors were never opened during that stop. Which means the items had to have been put on the plane before it left Afghanistan."

"That's not necessarily proof Bajraktari wasn't involved," Catherine said. "That's just proof _someone_ arranged to have the packages placed on the plane without putting them through official channels."

"Very true," Gosnell agreed. "However, when I dug a little deeper I uncovered two things. First, on this bill of lading whoever signed Bajraktari's name spelled it wrong."

Catherine looked at document in question. "That definitely seems fishy."

"Also, Bajraktari got bumped off his military transport flight when it set down in Chicago to refuel by a group of higher-ranking officers headed to California. It was 48 hours before he could get a seat on another one so he arrived back in Hawaii on December 28th. However, the package in question was picked up by someone with an ID bearing Bajraktari's name on the 27th."

"You said there were 2 unauthorized packages," Lea said. "What happened to the other one?"

"Two on this particular flight," Gosnell said. "It took a few days to get through all the paperwork, but we finally determined it was picked up by someone who showed an ID identifying himself as Lieutenant Hank Harper."

"I know Lieutenant Harper," Catherine said. "We served together on the Enterprise."

"Harper was sent to South Korea on TAD at the last minute. He never even flew back to Hawaii," Gosnell replied. "So, we have no idea who picked up those two packages, but it was not Bajraktari or Harper."

"I'm not sure I understand how my office can help," Lea said. "This would seem to be an internal Navy problem."

"Not exactly." Gosnell inhaled deeply and prepared to deliver the alarming news. "I ordered an immediate check on the records of all cargo flights over the last 90 days. We found at least 6 dozen unaccounted for crates."

"Six dozen crates of guns and drugs on the streets of Oahu?" Lea asked incredulously.

"That's a safe assumption," Gosnell admitted. "Though it's possible at least some have been shipped off to the mainland by now."

"That's not exactly comforting," Lea replied.

"So, how do we find out who's slipping these crates onto military flights and how they're doing it?" Catherine asked. There would be plenty of time later for determining who dropped ball in terms of security on those flights, but the most important thing now was to stop the flow of contraband.

"That's one of the ways we need your help," Gosnell said. "We are doing everything we can to stop any future illegal shipments, but we need some assistance from local law enforcement to help us find the crates that are already here. They have far more experience with these kinds of investigations. In fact … " he hesitated for just a second, unsure of what Lea's reaction to his next request would be, "I was hoping you might assign Five-0 to the case."

"Done," Lea said. "I'll let Commander McGarrett know. You can set up a meeting with him and his team as soon as possible."

"Thank you." Gosnell pumped his fist.

"You said that was one way we could help," Catherine said. "What are the others?"

"Just one other one really," Gosnell replied. "We've been working our contacts in Afghanistan trying to find anyone who might know anything about where these crates are originating and with who. We came across a woman who appears to have some information, but she doesn't trust us enough to come forward with it. She only trusts you, Lieutenant. She said she knows from your time in Afghanistan. She refuses to talk to anyone but you."

Lea looked at her chief of staff. "How would you feel about helping out on the case?"

"I'll do anything I can," Catherine said without hesitation. "Aside from going into the field. Steve and I have an agreement, for Angie's sake, that we'll never both be in the field at the same time."

"This wouldn't require you going into the field," Gosnell assured her. "We just need you to make contact with the informant and either have her give you the information or vouch for someone who is already on the ground there that she can talk to."

"That I can definitely do," Catherine said.

"How about if you liaise with Five-0 on this one," Lea suggested. "I want to get this issue taken care of quickly. We can keep your schedule as light as possible here. Go over your calendar with Jen. Keep whatever you have to and farm out the rest to Marliyah. I'll even take some meetings if need be."

Catherine nodded, already mentally going over what she had coming up in the next several weeks.

"I really appreciate your cooperation," Commander Gosnell said sincerely.

"No problem," Lea responded. "I want to get this taken care of as soon as possible. And there's no better way to make that happen than the combined efforts of Catherine and the Five-0 team. So, let's get it done."

 **TBC next Friday**

* * *

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	2. Chapter 2

_AN's in Chapter 1_

Danny approached the smart table where Steve, Catherine, Chin and Kono were reviewing photos of the seized contraband as well as satellite images of the area surrounding the warehouse where the first crate full of guns and drugs was discovered.

"Any luck figuring out who really rented that warehouse?" Steve asked as Danny inserted a thumb drive into one of the table's ports and swiped several images onto the overhead screens.

"We're getting a little closer," Danny replied. "These are copies of the rental agreement. The company's name is ABD Imports. No big surprise … it's a shell company. The name of the person who actually signed the rental contract, Oscar Emsworth, appears to be fake."

"Also, not a surprise," Chin noted.

Danny nodded then continued. "HPD is running a check for anyone who might have used that name in the past but so far no luck. They're expanding the search to the mainland. Luckily Lea was able to make a few calls and speed things up so we should have answers on that by the end of the day."

Kono smiled. "It helps to have friends in high places."

"It certainly doesn't hurt," Danny agreed. Please tell me you guys made some headway. We need to get a little traction going on this case. The navy might be stopping anymore contraband coming in under the guise of a sailor's belongings but once they know that route is closed off to them the smugglers will just find another way in."

"They will," Steve replied. "And the last thing we need is more drugs and guns on the street. We need to stop them before that happens."

"Baby steps." Catherine exhaled heavily. She was as eager as anyone to stop the flow of contraband but if there was one thing she'd learned over the years dealing with human intelligence sources it was that they couldn't be rushed. The people sharing information with any kind of law enforcement authority did so at their own peril. Even after the perpetrator was arrested the informant still had to live their life in a community where friends and associates of the person they informed on still lived and worked. They had to deal with the daily fear that their identity would be revealed placing their own life, and the lives of their friends and family, in jeopardy.

The decision to share information was not one that was made easily or could be taken lightly. Over the years Catherine had encountered many different motivating factors in informants including money, fear, and straight up revenge. The informant in this case was a woman named Dharini who Catherine had worked with many times. She ran a small school in her village and had been attacked on several occasions for her ongoing efforts to educate al the young people in her community, both boys and girls. Because of her close ties with village elders she had a certain level of protection from Taliban forces, but she had learned the very painful lesson that there were limits to that safety.

She lost her oldest daughter to a bombing in her village a decade earlier. Shayda supported her mother's efforts and had begun working as a teacher at Dharini's makeshift school. A school which the Taliban objected to in the strongest possible terms and wanted closed. Shayda's first week on the job a bomb went off just after dinner one evening which destroyed the building that housed the school. It was meant to be a warning. The Taliban assumed the structure was empty but Shayda, eager to do a good job, had stayed late to work on lesson plans. She was 20 years old when she died.

The reaction from Dharini's brothers and uncles, who ran the council that oversaw all activities in the village, was swift and brutal. They killed five Taliban members and drove dozens of others out of town before sunset the next day.

But none of that brought Shayda back.

By the time Catherine met Dharini several years later it was clear that all the woman wanted was peace and safety for everyone in her village, along with the right to educate children of both sexes. Sadly, over the years she had come to the realization that even though the Taliban was the biggest threat to the safety of the people she loved, there were members of her own family whose actions also brought potential danger to the everyone she knew and loved.

Her uncle Hamzad, for example, had provided protection to local drug dealers for decades in return for a cut of the profits. As Dharini watched more and more of the precious children who had attended her school leave and become addicts in their teens and early twenties she knew she had to do something. When an understanding American naval officer came to town looking for information Dharini felt an immediate connection. She knew instinctively she could trust the pretty brunette with the dark eyes.

She didn't open up at first. The risk was high, and she had to be sure. She had three other children and she didn't want to lose any of them the way she had lost Shayda. She had no doubt that if her uncle found out she had given information against him to anyone, especially the Americans, he would not hesitate to kill her, and those she loved, himself. And there would be nothing anyone else in her family could do to stop him.

So Dharini observed closely. She watched the young woman, who had introduced herself as Catherine Rollins, interact with the people of the village. She saw the young officer arrange for a neighbor's child, a young boy who was failing to thrive due to a cleft palate, to receive treatment in an American facility. She watched her pitch in to help a local farmer whose livestock had been infected with a virus. And several times a week when the young woman and her team visited the school, Dharini could see the sincere compassion in Catherine's eyes.

Eventually she gathered her courage and revealed to Catherine that her own uncle was the man behind the drug trade in her village as well as several other surrounding ones. She had never been more scared in her life, but she knew if she didn't do something the young people would continue to die.

Finally, her uncle was arrested. And true to her word the young naval officer protected Dharini's identity. No one ever knew she was the one who had given the information that lead to her uncle's arrest. The Americans remained in the village for several weeks just to be sure the flow of drugs stopped and no one else tried to step in and fill the vacuum left by Hamzad's absence. Villagers speculated on who might have turned Hamzad in but for the most part they were so happy the easy access to drugs had been stopped that they didn't really care and moved on to other topics.

During those weeks, Dharini got a chance to know Catherine better and even after the lieutenant moved on to her next assignment the two women stayed in touch. If Dharini ever heard of any illegal activity in the region, which happened from time to time, she would pass the information on to Lt. Rollins. On a few occasions Catherine contacted Dharini with questions about suspected criminals in the area. Sometimes Dharini knew nothing about the men Catherine was investigating but, on those occasions when she did know something, she was happy to pass along relevant information.

After Catherine returned to the states Dharini did her best to continue her mission of education with as low a profile as possible. Even though she interacted with American service members on a fairly regular basis she never provided them information. She never found anyone she trusted as much as she trusted Catherine Rollins.

Life continued for Dharini and her family in a fairly low-key manner for years. Her children all grew up, married, and had young families of their own. She enjoyed her new role as a grandmother. She was even considering turning the school over to one of her daughters to spend more time her grandchildren. Life was good. Peaceful and quiet. Until three months earlier when a dark new force invade their town.

He was an outsider. No one knew too many details about him. He kept to himself. He was surrounded by a large, well-armed entourage. Word began to spread that he dealt in drugs. And guns. And girls. He was brutal to anyone who defied him. The head of the local police department was found with his throat slit after a visit to the man's compound to ask questions. A cloud of fear and desperation descended over the village.

When an American naval contingent arrived and started asking questions most of the town refused to say anything. Dharini knew that left unchecked this man would destroy the only home she'd ever known. And that her family and friends, including her beloved grandchildren, were in danger until this man was dealt with. As she looked in it the eyes of the young American lieutenant leading the investigation, she knew she had to do something.

She might be willing to talk, she told the young man, but only to Lieutenant Rollins.

"I managed to get in touch with my informant Dharini," Catherine said. "We have to proceed with a certain amount of caution here. She's really sticking her neck out."

"It's not like we can provide protection for her because that would make it clear she was talking and put a big target on her back," Steve explained "She's worried about her kids and grandkids."

Chin opened up a manila folder laying on the top of the smart table. "Judging from these pictures of what happened to the police chief I'd say that's understandable."

"This guy is an animal," Kono agreed.

"I have someone I trust implicitly headed for the region as we speak," Catherine said. "As soon as she's in place I'll vouch for her to Dharini and then hopefully we can get the information we need to take this guy down."

"Why can't she just give you the information?" Kono asked.

Catherine shook her head. "We can't take the chance on any communications being intercepted. There's no way we can guarantee any line into her village as secure. As it stands, we had to use a code we developed years ago just to get through the initial call. I'm just glad I remembered it."

"Of course, you remembered," Steve said proudly.

Danny couldn't help but smile at how easily his friends fell right back into the rhythm of working closely together.

Not that he was surprised.

"Ok," Steve said as he surveyed all the evidence laid out in front of them. "Catherine, why don't you talk to Commander Gosnell and see if he's had any luck tracking down the missing crates. Chin, you and Kono keep digging on the identity of whoever rented that warehouse. Danny and I have a meeting at HPD with reps from the DEA and ATF to see if they have anything that might help. Let's say we meet back here around 4:00 to compare notes."

"Sounds good," Catherine said, and the others all nodded in agreement.

"Let's get this guy," Steve said resolutely, "Before anyone else gets hurt."

 **TBC Monday**


	3. Chapter 3

_AN's in Chapter 1_

 _I was lucky enough to co-write this one with the amazing Mari! A blast as always._

* * *

Chapter 3

"What have we got?" Steve asked a young HPD officer as he and Danny stepped around a group of forensic techs and entered a small apartment building in downtown Honolulu. They'd received a call from Duke twenty minutes earlier about a crime scene that he thought might be related to their current case.

"Over here," Catherine called from her position just outside a door at the end of the hall.

The two men moved carefully around the small, yellow markers on the floor that indicated evidence to be photographed then collected. In addition to spent bullets there was a blood trail that lead out to the sidewalk then disappeared.

"How'd you beat us here?" Danny asked as he grabbed a pair of rubber gloves from the box on HPD's evidence collection unit.

"We were in the area." Catherine nodded towards Commander Gosnell who was standing just inside the apartment door. "A couple young ensigns reported they were in the bar down the street last night and overheard several guys talking about how they had discovered a no risk way to bring guns and drugs in from Afghanistan. They didn't specifically mention naval transports, but we thought it was worth checking out."

Steve continued to survey the situation. "Did you get anything?"

"The bartender said he knew one of the guys and gave us a name," Catherine replied. "By the time we got here the crime scene tape was going up and Duke said he'd already called you."

Steve peered over her shoulder and saw at least three dead bodies on the floor. From the amount of blood spattered on the floors, walls and ceilings it looked like they'd been taken out by some kind of high caliber weapon.

"What makes him think this might be related to our case?" Danny asked but before Catherine could answer Duke and Commander Gosnell joined them.

"We found this." Duke handed Steve an evidence bag containing a copy of a bill of lading in the name of Lieutenant Hank Harper. "I recognized the name right away as being associated with one of the missing crates from Pearl. That's when I called you."

"Any sign of the missing items?" Danny asked hopefully.

Duke shook his head. "Not in there. We'll have the dogs come in after the bodies have been removed and search for drug residue, but the apartment was tossed so if there was anything here it probably left with the killer or killers."

"Looks like one of the victims might have gotten a shot off." Steve indicated the blood trail leading to the street.

"We collected a sample for DNA testing," Duke said. "I'll let you know when we get something."

Steve's jaw tightened. He had hoped they could get this case solved before there was any violence related to the contraband, but it appeared that wasn't going to happen. "Any ID on the victims?"

"We're running it now," Duke said. "Three out of state drivers' licenses. Two from California and one from Nevada. The name on the apartment lease is Aoki Keakawa. Born and raised on the island. Works for a small, local construction company. We're tracking him down."

"Let us know when you find him," Steve said. "We're gonna have a quick look around to see if anything jumps out."

"Sounds good." Catherine's phone buzzed and she pulled it from her pocket and checked the screen. "Lea wants a meeting to catch her up on what's going on. I'll head over and take care of that then meet you at HQ later."

* * *

Catherine glanced at her ringing phone and smiled when she saw the name on the screen. She told Commander Gosnell she'd meet him Lea's office in a few minutes then stepped into an empty conference room to take the call.

"Hello."

"Rollins!" The slightly tinny transmission didn't mask the genuine happiness her friend's voice held. "What can I do you for?" Lieutenant Commander Gilhooley's cheer was as evident as always. "Sorry I took so long getting back to you. Took a while for your message to catch up to me."

"Not a problem, Gilhooley, how are you?"

"Good, good. How's your little mini me? Damn if she's not your spittin' image."

Catherine's eyes sparkled. "She's wonderful, thanks. Are your kids all good?"

"Right as rain, thank God." She could hear him tap on wood. "So, what's up?"

"I need a favor. Someone found a way to get around security and smuggle guns and weapons into Hawaii on naval transports. We're trying to find out who the smugglers are but also who's helping them."

"I read about that in yesterday's security memo," Gilhooley responded. "New regs going into effect right away to prevent it happening again."

"Which is great," Catherine replied. "Problem is we need to find the stuff that's already here and stop whoever's bringing it in before they find another way."

"This the kind of thing some bigshot governor's aide usually handles?" he teased. He'd been so proud of Catherine when he heard about her getting the job as chief of staff. She was special. He'd known that from the minute they met.

"Special circumstances." Catherine pulled out a chair and took a seat at the large, rectangular conference table. "One of the in-country assets is skittish and only wants to reveal evidence to me since we have a history."

"You always did have a way with people." Gilhooley knew Catherine had formed strong bonds with some of the locals during her time in Afghanistan. "How can I help?"

"I need you to review some intel with me. I've been looking at suspicious activity reports for anything drug or gun related in and around Kabul. Most of it is strictly local stuff but there are three or four groups I think might be big enough, and well-organized enough, to pull something like this off on an international scale." Gilhooley had a top security clearance and nobody was better with connecting the dots on this kind of thing than him. "You can access the reports in the intel files of Operation Clean Streets operating out of Kabul. Captain Holland is the commanding officer."

"The navy never gets any more clever with those operation names, do they?" Gilhooley chuckled.

Catherine smiled, thinking of all the operations names Grace and the Allen kids had come with over the last several years. "No, they don't. Listen, I've got a meeting I need to get to but I'm gonna send you what I have and then maybe we can touch base later after you've had a chance to look at everything."

"Sounds good," Gilhooley said. "Talk to you soon."

* * *

Catherine entered Lea's office after a quick stop by her own to check with Jen about anything that might need her attention and found Lea and Commander Gosnell engaged in conversation with a man she'd never seen before. He appeared to be about 40 years old. Blonde haired and tanned. Dressed in a suit and tie. Something about his demeanor and body language told her he wasn't a local. A low level of tension in the room also indicated he was not completely welcome.

"Catherine." Lea looked up with a tight smile. "This is Captain Willoughby from LAPD Gang and Narcotics Division." Catherine crossed the room and extended her hand. "Captain, this is my chief of staff Catherine Rollins."

"Nice to meet you," Catherine said, taking note of the fact that the man refused to look her directly in the eyes. "Is there something we can help you with?"

Lea took a seat on the couch and Catherine joined her. Gosnell sat in one of the arm chairs facing the two women. Willoughby remained standing.

"I was just explaining to the governor that we received a request for information from HPD on anyone who uses the alias Oscar Emsworth." Willoughby fidgeted with his hands in a way that lead Catherine to believe he was very tightly wound. "LAPD has an active case involving that alias."

"What kind of case?" Catherine asked.

Willoughby squared his shoulders. "I'm not at liberty to say."

"Do you have the real name behind the alias?" Catherine pressed.

"I am not at liberty to reveal any information about an ongoing investigation," he said defiantly.

Catherine kept her tone even. "Then it appears we have nothing to talk about."

"We have a lot to talk about," the Captain snapped back before taking a deep breath to regain his composure. "We need everything you have on Emsworth. "We've been trailing him over a year. He's a very dangerous man. If he's expanding his operations outside of LA we need to know."

"As do we," Lea interjected. "It seems like working together and sharing information is the smart move here."

"You have no idea how many man hours we have in on this case already." Willoughby's face reddened. "I'm not going to jeopardize that by reading in people who hadn't even heard his name a week ago."

"I assure you we have our best people working on this," Lea said sharply.

Catherine and Gosnell exchanged a look. They'd both dealt with jurisdictional issues involving local law enforcement in the past.

"Be that as it may, I flew all the way here so I could impress upon you how urgent it is we receive any and all information you have on this matter right away. You can hand it over and I'll be back to LA and out of your hair."

Lea stood. "It appears you wasted your time. I'll be directing my people not to share any information with someone who isn't willing to reciprocate. Have a nice flight back to Los Angeles."

"I can make one phone call and get someone to order you to turn over the information," Willoughby growled.

Lea took a deep breath and pinned the man with a glare. "Is that so?"

Catherine stood. "I think you might want to measure your words here very carefully," she said. "Remember you're talking to the governor of Hawaii."

"I know exactly who I'm talking to, toots," Willoughby snotted. "I think you people are the ones who need to get a little perspective. I can have my boss on the phone in a matter of minutes. California has a governor too you know."

"I look forward to reiterating my position to him when and if he calls." Lea moved behind her desk. "Until then you'll have to excuse me. I have work to do."

* * *

Catherine entered the bullpen and stood between Steve and Danny at the smart table. She smiled to herself at how easily she'd fallen straight back into the old routine. Although she'd liaised on many cases with the team since becoming Lea's chief of staff, she didn't often spend quite so many hours at HQ. The fact that 'her' office remained as a place for her to work when she was there - even though it was occasionally used by HPD officials or even Frank Kaewa or his assistants if they needed a place to take a call or review priority materials that couldn't leave HQ - always made her smile.

They absolutely could have repurposed the space, but Steve claimed there was no need. The desk even sported ever changing photos of Angie, Grace and Joan in the silver frames next to the leather blotter.

"Okay." She tightened her ponytail and nodded. "Chin, can you …" Gesturing to the display, she pointed when he swiped the image she'd be discussing with him earlier onto the screen. "Thanks. So, I got word to Dharini through a member of the American naval contingent in the area and she indicated she was willing to give the information she has to another member of the intel unit as long as we skyped first, with her included on the call, so I could vouch for the person. She wanted to see us on screen so she was sure it was me. I chose my friend, Macide. I think she and Dharini are a good match. Once Macide and I chatted about the weather and family for a few minutes we hung up and I just got word that Dharini agreed to an in-person meeting."

Captain Macide Yzun was a US Marine of Turkish descent who was fluent in seven languages. She'd been in-country with Catherine on her second tour and they'd remained friends after Catherine moved to Hawaii. Currently stationed in the United States' Embassy in Kabul, she was known and trusted by many of the locals. The striking, green eyed woman who looked a decade younger than her forty years had a heart for the local elderly population. She had helped initiate funding for, and spent many off-duty hours in, a clinic that provided medical care to those on the outskirts of the city. Macide's high security clearance level made getting her assigned to help run fairly smoothly even by NI standards. Catherine, and therefore Steve and the team, trusted her implicitly.

"Macide is going to let me know as soon as the meeting wraps up but, in the meantime, she sent me these satellite photos of a compound not too far from the airport where they've detected some suspicious activity lately."

"Do we have any info on who lives there?" Steve asked.

"Not yet," Catherine replied, "But we're getting closer."

* * *

Catherine was snuggled up with Cammie and Angie when Steve exited the bathroom after his shower. The sight stopped him in his tracks and for a full five seconds, all he did was look at them with a slow, crooked smile lighting his face.

"Any room on there for Daddy?" He asked and was rewarded with matching smiles and Cammie's thumping tail.

"Dada, ah ba hee." Angie patted Catherine's arms from where she was cocooned in mother's embrace.

He climbed up and sat against the headboard, kissing first his wife, then their daughter's head.

"Here," Catherine said, passing him a book with a tiny smirk. "She picked one of her favorites."

Angie grinned at both parents and patted the cover. "Ahh bah, Caa-mie, Dada."

"Okay, I know, you're ready for your story." He opened the book. "But I think it's actually Mommy's favorite."

"Woof," Cammie said softly and reclined tucked up against Catherine's legs.

"You're ready, too, hmm?" Steve smiled at the dog and began to read. _Doggies_ was a counting book and while Angie delighted when her mommy read each different bark aloud, anyone watching Catherine watch Steve read it to their daughter would be hard pressed to decide who enjoyed it more.

Seeing her husband say each dog's bark in a different voice to entertain their daughter would reduce her to giggles every time.

At his first go around with that book, he'd raised his brow at her laughter and pointed out, "It says right in the review: _Be silly as you count the 5 dogs, and switch up the barks - your child will find it hysterical."_

Angie's current favorite doggie was number three and when Steve read, " _The doggy says ...nnn...nnn...nnn…_ " in a gruff voice, the sound of her laughter floated through the room.

Their daughter's giggles along with Cammie's comforting snuggles, combined to lift the stress of the day from Steve and Catherine better than any magic elixir ever could.

Sharing a smile until Catherine once again laughed at the image of Commander McGarrett reading animatedly to their 18-month-old, Steve leaned over and pressed a kiss to her lips.

She marveled yet again at how their daughter's presence could chip away the tension from herself and Steve almost instantly. She kissed Angie's head and smoothed a hand over the tousled curls as the little one yawned and snuggled droopy eyed, against her mommy while keeping one tiny hand on her best friend's fur as her daddy finished up the book.

* * *

Steve ended his call to Esther and glanced at his best friend as he drove through the streets of the warehouse district.

"Everything okay with Angie?" Danny asked. His partner didn't normally check in an hour after leaving home.

"She's great. She woke up about midnight and was a little … clingy, but then she slept normally." A small smile lifted his lip at the thought of his daughter. "I just wanted to make sure."

Danny shifted his weight as Steve took a corner. "She's only got one molar left to come in, right?"

"Yeah, and it's already broken through, but I called the doctor this morning."

"For clinging?" Danny smiled.

"Catherine was concerned it might be another earache coming on and with this case…" He waved a hand.

No parent wanted to get a call about a child not feeling well while they were neck-deep in an investigation, but the experienced dad knew if Steve's baby girl wasn't feeling well and he was in the field, it would eat at him not being able to accompany her to see the doctor. " _Catherine_ was concerned, huh?"

Steve shrugged, busted.

"What'd the doc say?"

"That she's at an age where they wake up a little clingy sometimes and it was probably a nightmare. She kept asking for a story at midnight. She was saying ' 'mere, Mama' to Cath and was literally holding onto my shirt with both hands when I put her back to bed."

"Ahh." Danny nodded. "She just wanted more time with mommy and daddy. Grace when through those stages. A bad dream would wake her up and she just wanted to see we were there." His eyes glinted. "You read her a story, didn't you?"

"No." Steve looked straight ahead as the light they were coming to went yellow as he drove through it. At his partner's snort of disbelief, he muttered, "I told her one."

Danny barked a laugh at exactly how wrapped by his daughter Steve was.

Rolling his eyes, Steve took another turn and added, "Esther said she's doing great. And she really was fine this morning." Again, the smile flitted across his features, then he sobered, refocusing on the task at hand as they pulled up to a dingy looking warehouse that appeared deserted but had been rented by the same shell company that rented the one where they found the first crate. "Let's break this case so I can get home and spend some extra time with her this afternoon."

 **TBC Friday**

* * *

 _Book: Doggies_ by Sandra Boynton


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"So, after talking to Dharini, and checking out the info she gave us, it looks like our suspect is a guy named Farshad Khoshbakht."

The Five-0 team, along with Catherine and Commander Gosnell, were gathered around the smart table being debriefed via secured chat by Captain Macide Yzun.

"What do we know about him?" Steve asked.

"He's not your run of the mill thug," Macide replied. "He was born and raised in the area then moved to the UK with his parents at age 14. He went to Oxford and got a degree in chemical engineering. Worked in multiple locations across Europe before landing back in Afghanistan a little over a year ago. I sent you a copy of his school and employment records."

"I got them," Chin said as he swiped the documents onto the screens surrounding Macide's image.

Catherine scanned the information. "Any arrest records?"

"Not that we've turned up so far," Macide answered. "I've got a team working on piecing together his life over the last decade or so. I'll let you know what they come up with."

Danny couldn't help but notice that on paper at least this guy looked like an upstanding citizen. "How can you be sure this is our guy?"

"We can't be 100% sure," Macide conceded. "He's really good at keeping his hands clean. But there appears to be a large amount of money moving in and out of accounts this guy is associated with. The local scuttlebutt is definitely that he's bad news. Apparently, some of his men have loose lips when they're trying to impress the locals. They've been bragging about getting one up on the American military. Claim they have people on the inside."

Commander Gosnell's jaw tightened. He hated to think any service member would be involved in smuggling drugs and guns back to the United States but if they were, they would be dealt with immediately. "Does he have any military connections?"

Macide shook her head. "Not as far as we can tell, but we're looking into it." She hated the idea that any navy personnel might be involved as much as Gosnell.

"So," Steve raked his left hand through his hair, "What's our next step?"

"We're working on getting ears on his compound," Macide reported. "We should have something within 72 hours. I'm also working on gathering up anything we have from our in-country resources. Give me a few days and I'll get that to you."

"In the meantime, I'll run the names of every person working at the transport center to check for any connection at all with Khoshbakht," Gosnell said. "Maybe we'll get lucky and turn something up there."

"Sounds good," Macide replied. "Let me know if you come up with anything. Otherwise what do you say we meet back here Monday morning your time and see where we stand."

They all agreed and after a round of goodbyes disconnected the call. As Macide Yzun's picture faded from the overhead screen Steve turned to Catherine.

"You know how this stuff works better than anyone," he said. "When can we expect some more concrete info on this guy? Without knowing his full history it's impossible to figure out who his connections on the island might be."

"Macide is the absolute best at what she does," Catherine assured him. "There's no one I would trust more to get what we need. Remember, she has to be careful. She doesn't want to spook Khoshbakht and she also has to be sure she doesn't compromise her sources in any way. It's not like gathering intel stateside."

Steve nodded. He knew she was right. It was just that waiting was never his strong suit.

"I'm headed back to my office," Catherine continued. "I have a meeting about the new highways and bridges bill and then a lunch with Senator Patterson. After that I'll come back over here and make some calls to some of my other contacts. See if they have anything on Khoshbakht."

Steve exhaled. "Sounds good. You're looking into any connections between this guy and active navy personnel, right?" he asked Gosnell who nodded in the affirmative. "The rest of us will take the local angle and see what we can turn up. Chin and Kono, work your sources and see what the word on the street is. Danny and I will go talk to Duke and see if they've identified the victims in the apartment shooting yet. Let me know right away if you find anything."

* * *

"We identified the three dead bodies," Duke reported. "Three low level thugs. Kalai Kawai, Jake Keaunui, and Mana Kanekalua." He handed Steve and Danny a copy of their arrest records. "Possession with intent to distribute, drunk and disorderly, assault. Nothing that makes you think they'd be involved in an international conspiracy."

"Sometimes guy like that make the best dupes," Danny pointed out, "They'll do anything to make themselves seem important."

Steve scanned the records. "Known associates?"

"They were pretty much a little band of three," Duke replied. "They were brought in a couple of times with a guy named Kurt Wolford. We're scouring the island for him, but it looks like he's gone underground."

"Of course he has," Steve said. "Any word on the shooters?"

"A lady in one of the upstairs apartments said two men came into the building behind her about 10 minutes before she heard the shots. She remembers they were carrying a duffel bag but didn't get a good look at their features. We pulled a picture off the camera mounted on the building across the street." Duke showed them the photo. "They both wore hats and kept their heads down. Makes me think these guys are pros. We're checking other cameras in the area to see if we can get a better shot of them."

Danny and Steve studied the photo.

"As far as we can tell they got into a car that was parked about halfway down the block," Duke continued. "The plates traced back to a 2009 Toyota that was reported stolen earlier the same morning from a parking lot downtown. We found it abandoned at the airport. We're checking flights just in case, but they could easily have dumped it there just to throw us off."

"You think the shooters came from off the island?" Danny asked.

Duke shrugged. "Gotta check every possibility. I have as many guys as I can spare reviewing footage as we speak. As soon as we find something, I'll let you know.

* * *

By 4:00 PM the team was once again gathered with Catherine and Commander Gosnell reviewing the new information they'd gathered. It was sparse to be sure, but in a case like this it was hard to know when one tiny detail might jump start the investigation and help them bring down the smugglers.

"A lot of my regular sources have clammed up," Chin said. "Whoever's involved must be bad news because no one wants to say anything."

"Same with me," Kono reported. "I don't think there's any way these guys are local. If they were someone would be willing to talk. I think they must have been brought in just for this job."

"So Khoshbakht is covering his tracks," Gosnell suggested.

"Looks like it," Catherine agreed.

Steve's phone buzzed with an incoming call and when he saw Duke's name he stepped away. "What's up, Duke?"

" _We might have something, Steve. I just got a call from Collins over at the DEA. The alias Oscar Emsworth rang a bell with him. He thinks it might be tied to someone they have under surveillance. A heavyweight from the mainland named Rutger Finn. He's renting a place out on Diamond Head."_

"Can he get us any clearer pictures?" Steve's tone was hopeful.

" _I'm sending them to you now. I'll let you know if I hear anything else."_

Steve stepped back towards the group and pulled up the pictures Duke had just sent on his phone. "Looks like we might have caught a break. The DEA has eyes on a possible suspect. He uses the alias Oscar Emsworth which showed up on some of the bills of lading." He held out his phone. "Does he look familiar to anyone?"

"Uh-oh," Gosnell said. "We've got trouble." He exchanged a glance with Catherine who looked equally as alarmed.

"You know this guy," Steve asked.

"Not the one on the left," Gosnell replied. "But the other guy is named Willoughby. He's with LAPD. We met him in the governor's office the other day."

* * *

It took some doing but Lea managed to get Captain Willoughby back into her office where she was waiting with Steve, Danny, Catherine and Commander Gosnell.

"Would you care to explain this?" she demanded showing him the picture from the DEA surveillance before he'd had a chance to even get all the way in the office.

"That's me," he replied defiantly. "And Eddie Ocala aka Oscar Emsworth. I heard from one of my confidential informants in LA that he was here on the island trying to move some merchandise that matched the description of the stuff brought in from Afghanistan, so I went to have a little talk with him."

"Do you have any idea what you've done?" Gosnell thundered. Everyone else in the room was momentarily taken aback by the normally even-keeled Commander's outburst. "If he knows we're on to him he'll disappear. And take any hope of leading us to his boss with him. You have interfered with a naval investigation and there will be severe consequences."

"Relax." Willoughby held his hands up in front of his chest. "He doesn't know who I am. I used an established alias to make contact. He thinks I'm a high-level dealer from back on the mainland who just happens to be on Oahu checking out some new business opportunities."

"And will that alias hold up when he checks you out," Gosnell asked heatedly. "Because these guys are gonna do more than a simple Google search."

"It'll hold up," Willoughby said defiantly.

"And just exactly who gave you permission to make contact with a suspect here in Hawaii?" Lea asked angrily. "I thought I made it very clear the other day that we are handling this investigation."

"And I told you we've been on this guy's case for over a year," Willoughby snapped back. "I'm not about to have all that work go to waste because a bunch of locals smell a big bust."

"I would hardly call either the Five-0 task force or the HPD a 'bunch of locals'," Lea growled, not backing down in the face of Willoughby's obvious anger.

"Well, I'm not taking any chances," Willoughby snotted back.

"What about the DEA?" Steve stepped directly in front of a now red-faced Willoughby. Their eyes met and for the first time the others in the room saw Willoughby's confidence falter. He squared his shoulders and straightened his spine but there was something in his manner that made it clear he had lost a measure of bravado. "They have an active surveillance operation going. Did you make them aware LAPD was going to be running an undercover operation?"

Willoughby placed his hands on his hips. "No."

"LAPD just figured they could come to the island and run their own investigation without filling us in?" Steve arched an eyebrow causing Willoughby to take a step back and swallow hard. Steve was an excellent reader of people and he knew someone going rogue when he saw it. There was no way the LAPD brass would have condoned any operation on the island without the permission of the governor's office.

Lea moved behind her desk. "I'm going to get to the bottom of this." She pressed the intercom button. "Karen, can you please get the me the chief of the LAPD on the phone."

"No … wait," Willoughby said. "There's no need for that." He took a deep breath. "My boss doesn't actually know I'm here or that I made contact with Emsworth."

Steve glared at him. "What are you talking about?"

"I was telling you the truth when I said we've been working on finding this guy for over a year," Willoughby said, suddenly more contrite. It was if being found out allowed him to drop some of the brash attitude he'd been sporting since his arrival in Hawaii. "He's bad news. He has contacts all over the world. You name the illegal contraband you're interested in and this guy will get it for you. Anything from diamonds and illegal ivory to guns and drugs. There's even a rumor he's dabbled in heavy artillery and nuclear materials."

"That doesn't explain what you're doing here on the island meeting with the guy," Steve said in a tone that made it clear he wanted Willoughby to get to the point quickly.

"I tried going through channels and my bosses turned me down. They've been working to get someone on the inside for over a year, but it hasn't happened. They keep saying they need time to gather more evidence but meanwhile this guy just keeps going about his business and killing innocent people."

Steve saw a flicker of something familiar in the man's eyes. A look he'd seen before in his own mirror. He could tell the man was on edge and he needed to proceed carefully, or Willoughby would shut down. "So, what's your plan here?" he asked in a more even tone. "You made contact with the guy but what now? You don't have any backup. No resources. How are you going to handle this?"

"I figured I'd call me boss and let him know I found a way in and then we could work out the details," Willoughby admitted. "What's that old saying … it's easier to ask for forgiveness than permission?"

Danny snorted. "Where have I heard that before?"

Steve mock glared at his partner then looked back at Willoughby. "Why is this so personal for you?"

"Who said it's personal," Willoughby scoffed, but the fact that he couldn't meet Steve's eyes was a dead giveaway.

Steve continued to state silently until Willoughby finally continued in a softer voice. "About a year ago we got a call about some suspicious activity in a warehouse in downtown LA. We dispatched two cars to check it out. They rolled in there expecting they were dealing with a noise complaint. Emsworth's men panicked. They thought they were busted so they opened fire with large caliber weapons. Killed two of the officers and wounded the other two." He took a beat. "One of the dead officers was my sister."

Steve winced. "I'm sorry for your loss." He looked first at Lea, then at Catherine, Danny and Gosnell in turn.

When he saw a similar look on each of their faces he turned back to Willoughby. "You're not going to be able to handle this on your own. You'll need back up."

"Yes," Willoughby acknowledged.

"OK then," Steve said. "Let's make a plan."

 **TBC**


	5. Chapter 5

AN's in Chapter 1

* * *

 **Chapter 5**

"You sure you weren't followed?" Steve asked as he escorted Lee Willoughby into his office where Danny was already reviewing the first wave of intel Macide Yzun had gathered on Farshad Khoshbakht.

"Positive." The LA police captain assured him. "I heard from my contacts in LA that Ocala's people were checking out my backstory and like I told you, it's airtight. He's not suspicious in the least."

Steve took a seat behind his desk while Willoughby joined Danny on the couch. "Good. I have a feeling we're only gonna get one shot at this so we can't afford any mistakes."

"Have they found anything to connect Ocala and Khoshbakht?" Willoughby asked as he looked over Danny's shoulders at the documents bearing the seal of US Naval Intelligence.

Danny shook his head. "Nothing specific yet. Both of these guys are very good at covering their tracks."

"Catherine says Macide is the best," Steve interjected. "She'll uncover the connection. And we need to be ready when she does."

"Isn't it kind of weird to have the governor's chief of staff so involved in an investigation?" Willoughby asked.

"Catherine liaises with us on cases from time to time. She's one hell of an investigator and we're always happy to have her help," Steve replied with unmistakable pride. "In this case her connections in Afghanistan are invaluable."

Willoughby smiled. During one of their first mission planning sessions he'd commented to Danny about how beautiful Catherine was and had been quickly disabused of any idea that he might have a chance with the governor's chief of staff.

"Oh, I know she's great," he said immediately. After a rocky start he had developed what he considered a good working relationship with both Five-0 and the governor's office and he had no desire to rock the boat in any way. "It's just a …" He took a beat to choose exactly the right word. "Unique situation."

Danny chuckled. "That's gonna be the title of Steve and Catherine's memoirs. A Unique Situation."

Willoughby glanced at the coffee table and saw a manila folder with his name on the tab. He picked it up, opened it and began flipping through the information. A few pages in he came across a picture of his sister and multiple newspaper accounts of her death. Pain flashed across his features and an immediate tension filled the room.

"I'm sorry," Steve said sincerely. "We had to check you out. This is a major investigation and we had to know who we're dealing with."

"I get it. I would have done the same thing," Willoughby said, his eyes still transfixed on the picture of a smiling young officer who had just graduated from the academy. That's the way he wanted to remember his sister. Full of plans. Full of hope. And most of all full of life.

As much as he wanted to avoid it his eyes drifted to the next picture which had been taken by a reporter who had somehow managed to get behind the police tape for just a matter of seconds before being apprehended. The bodies had been removed but the sight of the blood-spattered cement and the remnants of the paramedics' attempts to save the lives of the wounded officers caused a sharp pain in his chest every time.

Danny took the folder from his hands and closed it. "I'm really sorry about your sister."

"Thanks."

"Her name was Dana, right?" Steve asked. "What was the age difference."

"Two years," Willoughby replied. He looked at Steve and Danny who were both clearly offering him a chance to say more if he felt up to it. "She was great. A great cop _and_ a great little sister." He smiled as the memories of good times came flooding back. "She was better than me at pretty much everything. Everything was a competition when we were growing up."

Danny nodded his head and smiled. "I know that feeling."

"I got a 3.8 GPA and she got a 4.0. I was student council treasurer, she was president. I made the football team, she was captain of the track team. I said I wanted to be a cop, she said she did too. It took me two tries to get into the police academy, she got in the first time. I graduated top 20 in my class, she was top 10." A dark shadow passed over his features. "She was a good person and a damn good officer. She'd just gotten engaged. Her life was just beginning. She didn't deserve to be gunned down because of low-life like Eddie Ocala."

"I understand exactly what you're going through," Steve said.

"I know I can come off a little … I don't know … I guess you could say unhinged." Willoughby looked contrite. "It's just that the day we buried my sister I made a promise to myself and to my parents that I would make sure the people who killed her pay. Not just the guys who fired the fatal bullets but the man behind it all. And that's Eddie Ocala. I couldn't care less if it costs me my job, or even my life, he's going to pay."

"We'll get him," Danny said confidently. "For Dana and for all the other people whose lives he's ruined."

Willoughby cleared his throat. "Thanks. I've made it clear that I'm looking for a big score. Potentially his biggest deal yet. And that if he can't get me what I need I'll find someone else who can. The man has a monstrous ego. There's no way he's gonna let this slip through his hands. He checked me out and my alias held so now it's just a matter of waiting for him to call back and set up a meeting. Then we can take him down and get Khoshbakht in the process."

* * *

An hour later, after Willoughby had left, Steve and Danny were still in Steve's office reviewing the latest intel from Macide. Chin and Kono were in court all day on a murder case from two years ago that had finally made its way to trial.

"Do you feel completely comfortable with Willoughby being the man on the inside?" Danny asked. "Like you said, we're probably only get one shot at this and he's a bit of a loose cannon."

"I know," Steve agreed. "But still I think he's our best option. Not only does he already have an alias in place and ready to go but he's already made contact. If we pulled him out now, we'd have to start from scratch and that could take weeks, if not months."

"I'm not sure we could pull him out now even if we wanted to." Danny glanced at the folder bearing the LA police captain's name on the table in front of him.

Steve rubbed his temples. "Probably not. In an ideal world our person on the inside wouldn't be so close to the situation but we have to work with what we have."

Danny leaned back. "He kinda reminds me of you when we first met. Impulsive. Driven by emotion. Determined to take down his target no matter the cost."

Steve rolled his eyes. "I think you're exaggerating."

"If anything, I'm underselling it," Danny snorted. "In those days you were like a bull in a china shop. You just barreled over anyone who got in your way in your single-minded pursuit of a goal."

Steve arched an eyebrow. "As opposed to now I'm what? Are you saying I've gotten soft?"

"I'm saying you've mellowed slightly," Danny replied. "And I emphasize the word slightly. At least now I can get you to stop and think occasionally before you go charging in."

"So, you _are_ saying I'm soft."

"I said no such thing," Danny replied adamantly. "Now you're the one exaggerating."

"Maybe I need to work on that. Try being a little more impulsive." Steve always enjoyed winding his best friend up.

"That is the last thing you need to do." Danny's hands began to flail as he got more and more worked up. "I was simply saying that you have matured slightly over the last few years. I credit Catherine. And of course, my adorable goddaughter. You're more likely to think things through now and not just jump in …" His voice trailed off as he looked at Steve who was leaning back in his chair, hands laced behind his head, smiling. "Ok fine … I get it … you're just trying to wind me up. That's great. I was trying to pay you a compliment but if you don't want …" He gathered up a handful of files. "I'll just go over the rest of this in my own office."

Just as he reached the door Steve spoke. "Catherine and Angie certainly deserve a lot of the credit but don't sell yourself short. You deserve quite a bit yourself."

Danny turned around. The sincerity etched on Steve's features brought a lump to his throat. They didn't need to talk about it any further. They both understood. "Lunch at Kamekona's?"

"Sounds good," Steve replied. "Give me five minutes to call Catherine and I'll meet you in the bullpen."

* * *

After putting Angie to bed, which included reading her favorite story twice, Steve decided to go for an evening swim with Cammie while Catherine caught up on some paperwork. When he entered the living room afterwards, a towel wrapped around his neck and a damp Cammie trailing behind, she was just hanging up the phone.

"That was Macide," she said. "She has a promising lead. A guy who used to work with Khoshbakht. Apparently he knows pretty much all there is to know about the whole smuggling operation."

Steve took a seat on the couch next to her. "Is he willing to talk?"

"They're negotiating," she replied. "He's looking to relocate somewhere outside of Afghanistan."

"He wants to come to the US?" Steve grimaced. He knew that no matter how valuable this guy's information was that would be a tough sell.

"Luckily no." Catherine swiped at a drop of water that was rolling down his cheek. "He wants to go to Pakistan. Macide is working on making that happen."

"I hope she can." He dropped his arm across her shoulders. "Some inside information about how the operation works would be nice."

"It sure would," Catherine agreed. "She's gonna let me know as soon as she has anything."

They sat in silence for a minute as Steve traced small circles on her shoulder with his index finger. She could tell he needed some time to gather his thoughts.

"Danny and I had an interesting meeting with Willoughby this afternoon," he finally said, breaking the silence.

"Interesting how?"

"He told us about his sister." Steve's voice softened. "It sounds like they were very close. He didn't say it specifically, but I think he blames himself for her decision to become a cop. When she was killed he just kind of lost it. Nothing matters to him right now except putting the people responsible for her death behind bars."

Catherine squeezed his hand. The baby monitor broadcast Angie's soft murmuring in her sleep.

"It's just that …" His voice trailed off.

Catherine gave him a few seconds. He'd become much better about sharing his thoughts and feelings openly but sometimes he still had trouble finding the words. "It's just that you can't help but think if Mary hadn't adopted Joan and gotten her life together that could have been you?"

He pulled back and looked at her with wonder. "How do you do that? How do you always know exactly what I'm thinking?"

"Years of experience," she smiled.

He kissed her softly then continued. "We both know Mary hung out with a pretty tough crowd. If one or two things had gone differently who knows what might have happened."

Catherine placed her hand on his cheek and turned his head until they made eye contact. "Thankfully she made it through those days without anything too bad happening. And when she made the choice to get away from that kind of life and create a better, healthier path for herself and Joan you were there to support her."

"I wish I'd been there for her all along," Steve sighed.

"You were both dealing with a lot," Catherine said firmly. "You did the best you could. Besides, she needed to be the one who initiated the changes. Until she was ready there was nothing you could have done."

"I guess you're right," he said. He still struggled from time to time with guilt about not being there for Mary during her teenage years even though Catherine was always quick to remind him he wasn't the one who created the circumstances that lead to her feelings of abandonment and her skewed self-image. That was Doris and their father.

"I have an idea," she said softly. "I have to go move the laundry from the washer from the dryer and put a new load in. Why don't you call Mary?"

He checked his watch. "That's an excellent idea. I think I will."

As Catherine made her way towards the garage he pulled out his phone and dialed. Mary answered on the second ring.

" _Hey, big brother. Everything ok?"_

"Everything's great." He smiled at the happy tone in her voice. "I just thought I'd check in and see how things are going there."

" _Well, Joan came home from school today with gum in her hair. There was a slight mishap during nap time."_

"Sounds like it." He chuckled. "Did you get it out?"

" _Finally. It took a few hours of work by both Aaron and I, and a combo of peanut butter and toothpaste, but luckily we didn't have to do any cutting."_

"That's good."

" _Oh, and remember that project I was working on for my Human Behavior and the Social Environment course? I got an A!"_

"That's awesome." He leaned his head back and smiled. "Apparently your presentation went well. I told you you were gonna do great."

As she relayed the details about the day of her presentation, as well as the positive comments of both her professor and her classmates, Steve smiled. He was a very lucky man for a whole variety of reasons. Her happiness, and the bond they'd formed as adults, was a big one. He was determined to never take that for granted. In fact, it steeled his resolve to help Lee Willoughby find the justice he so desperately wanted. Nothing would ever bring his sister back. He'd never have a chance to share another phone conversation with her. The least Steve could do was make sure the men responsible ended up behind bars. And that was exactly what he intended to do.

 **TBC**

* * *

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	6. Chapter 6

_Surprise! It's me today. Ilna had to help someone deal with a real-life issue so I'm covering today. I'll be wrapping this case fic up on Friday with my usual posting then next week we'll be back to our regular schedule._

* * *

 **Chapter 6**

"Remember the goal is to lure Khoshbakht onto US soil where it will be much easier to arrest him," Catherine said. "We can't count on the Afghans to prosecute him. He has too many connections."

Lee Willoughby had finally managed to get a sit down with Eddie Ocala to discuss a large purchase of guns and ammunition. He was huddling with Steve, Danny and Catherine at a local safe house to go over the final details.

"You have to convince Ocala you're a big fish," Steve said. "Otherwise he'll never pressure Khoshbakht to show up for an in-person meeting."

"But don't overplay your hand," Danny interjected. "You come in asking for too much and they're gonna smell a rat."

"I'll be careful," Willoughby said, though something in his tone didn't match up with his cool, calm exterior.

Catherine bit her lip as her eyes met Steve's. They both knew from experience it took nerves of steel to work undercover. Willoughby couldn't afford to come off as anything other than completely confident. The tightness in his voice had them both concerned. Working with a new team was never easy but if Steve felt like Willoughby wasn't up to the job, he was going to have to pull the plug on the entire mission.

"The governor has agreed to provide the cash you need," Catherine tapped a large duffle bag on the table in front of her, "to make an impression."

"Is there a tracking device in there?" Willoughby asked. "Because you know Ocala will check and if he finds one the deal is off and I'm dead."

"No tracking device," Catherine promised him. "The bills are unmarked and non-sequential. Nothing to raise any red flags. Half a million as a down payment should be enough to convince him you're a serious buyer."

Willoughby nodded. "Got it."

Steve handed the LA detective a piece of paper. "According to Macide these are a list of the weapons Khoshbakht currently has access to. Put at least three or four of these on the wish list you give Ocala."

"I'll hand over the money," Willoughby strategized, "then tell him there's a lot more where that came from but I'm gonna have to meet with his supplier to make sure he can provide me with what I need."

"You gotta stand firm on that," Steve reiterated.

"I know," Willoughby assured him.

Catherine pointed to a satellite image of the area around the warehouse where the meeting was to take place. "Chin and Kono are heading the surveillance team which is already in place."

"Are you sure Ocala won't know they're there?"

"Positive," Steve replied. "This isn't our first time doing this."

"I didn't mean to … that is to say I wasn't trying to imply …" Willoughby stammered.

"I know," Steve said. "Just trust me, you don't have to worry about the surveillance team."

Willoughby took a deep breath and nodded. Everyone else in the room could see him working through something in his head. Finally, he took a deep breath and said, "I trust you."

Steve could hear the confidence returning to the detective's voice.

"Commander Gosnell has parabolic listening devices in place on three different boats just off shore and he's authorized the use of 2 listening drones as well. We should have ears on you at all times."

Willoughby nodded. "Are we going to have a code word in case it all starts to go sideways and I need you to move in?"

"We can do that," Danny said. "You pick the word and I'll get it to the team on the ground."

Willoughby thought for a few seconds. "How about pineapple?"

Danny chuckled. "Pineapple?"

"Seems as good as any." Willoughby shrugged. "I don't think I'll have to use it but in case I do that one will be easy to remember."

Catherine and Steve shared a relieved glance. Whatever nerves had affected Willoughby earlier seemed to have passed. Steve looked at his watch. "You better get going if you want to make it to the meeting on time," he said. "Last chance for you to bail out if you don't feel comfortable.

Willoughby grabbed the duffel bag full of money and flung it over his shoulder. "I'm fine," he said confidently. "Let's do this."

* * *

Danny paced nervously as the meeting between Willoughby and Ocala dragged on. Luckily the listening apparatus deployed by Commander Gosnell worked flawlessly and they'd been able to listen in on the entire meeting.

"Just get to the point and get out of there," he groused. "The longer this goes on the more chance there is of a slip up."

"He's doing fine," Catherine said calmly.

"He's throwing out the bait," Steve agreed. "He has to be patient so he doesn't spook Ocala."

"Look who's telling me about being patient," Danny snorted as his attention was drawn back to the conversation happening in the warehouse.

"Bottom line is you have the kinds of hard to get items my clients are interested in acquiring," Willoughby said, "And my clients have plenty of money with which to procure those items. I think we can both benefit from working together."

"I'm listening," Ocala said coolly.

"I'm willing to make an initial ten million dollar buy with more to follow if I like the merchandise I receive. I'm looking for Nesterov Assault Rifles, LR-300s, BR18s and of course AK9s and AR15s."

"No problem. I can deliver all of those items."

"Excellent," Willoughby replied. "But there's one more thing. I'm going to need to meet your overseas supplier face to face. I need assurances that he has access to a steady supply of the things my clients want."

"I can give you those assurances," Ocala said.

"No offense." Willoughby stood his ground. "But I need to hear it from the horse's mouth. My clients won't agree to anything if I can't give them my personal guarantee that the supply line isn't going to dry up after the first purchase. And I won't make any such guarantee unless I meet the supplier myself."

Steve, Danny and Catherine held their collective breath as the warehouse fell quiet. The silence felt like it dragged on forever although it was only 30 seconds. Finally, Ocala spoke.

"I'll see what I can do," he said. "Stay by your phone."

* * *

Several hours later, after debriefing Lee Willoughby, Catherine and the Five-0 team were wrapping up a few details and preparing to call it a day just in time to make it home for dinner. As they were gathering their things Catherine's phone rang.

"It's Macide," she said as she connected the call. "Hey Macide, what's up?"

" _I don't know what your guy said in his meeting with Ocala, but it did the trick."_

"Really?" Catherine shot the others a hopeful look.

" _Really. We picked up some chatter from Khoshbakht's people. He's making arrangements to move a new shipment of product ASAP. On top of that it looks like he's planning a trip out of the country himself."_

"When?" Catherine asked.

She listened for a few more minutes before disconnecting the call and turning to the rest of the team who were eager to hear what was going on.

"Khoshbakht is heading to Hawaii to meet with a potential new client. He'll be here Friday." Her eyes sparkled. "We've got him."

* * *

 **To be continued and wrapped up on Friday**

 _Find all our stories (in chronological order!) on our website: marirealmcroll dot wixsite dot com backslash real-mcroll_

 _Or in the McRoll in the REAL World community here on fanfiction dot net Find us on Tumblr: mcrollintherealworld dot tumblr dot com_

 _You can join our mailing list by emailing us realmcroll at yahoo dot com with: Add me, please! in the subject line. Or just drop us a line to say hi! We love hearing from our readers._

 _And find me on Twitter asking your opinions on all things McRoll in the REAL World! at Mari21763 and add #REALMcRoller_


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

* * *

"Is there anything else you need from me to get ready for this afternoon?" Lea asked of Steve and Catherine who were seated in the visitors' chairs in front of her desk giving her a final report before Lee Willoughby's meeting with both Eddie Ocala and Farshad Khoshbakht. If everything went as planned the two smugglers would be in custody by nightfall and a major supply line of illegal drugs and weapons into the US would be cut off.

"We're all set," Steve replied confidently.

"Khoshbakht's plane landed at a private airstrip on the far side of the island at around 1:00 AM," Catherine added. "The surveillance team followed him to a private residence Eddie Ocala owns on the outskirts of Honolulu and he's been there ever since."

The intercom on Lea's desk buzzed and her assistant's voice filled the air. "Commander Gosnell is here to see you. He said it's important."

"Send him in," Lea responded.

"Sorry to interrupt, Governor" Gosnell said as he entered the office. "We finally got a line on how Khoshbakht managed to get contraband onto US naval transport flights and I figured you'd want to know right away."

"Absolutely." Lea indicated one of the chairs sitting along the wall that were used as extra seating for large staff meetings. "Pull up a chair."

"Thank you." Gosnell placed his chair next to Catherine's and proceeded. "I'll get right to it since I know you've got a busy afternoon ahead. We've detained Lieutenant Commander William Regent. He's the second in command of the Kabul Transport Center. He helped Khoshbakht bypass all the checkpoints and get the crates on the planes. He's admitted his role in the operation and is currently cooperating with the investigation."

Catherine and Steve both felt a wave of disappointment. They knew it would have been almost impossible for those crates to have made it on the planes without help on the inside but they both hated the thought of any naval personnel being involved.

"Did he say why he did it?" Catherine asked.

Gosnell blew out a breath. "He did. It seems his wife Bina has a drug problem. She went to rehab last year but it didn't stick. Somehow Khoshbakht found out about it and exploited it. He was giving her drugs at no charge on the condition she would help him by making deliveries around town. Which she did."

"Let me guess," Lea said. "He then used that information to blackmail her husband."

"That was his first attempt," Gosnell replied. "But it didn't work."

"How so?" Steve asked. "You said he confessed to helping get the stuff on the transport flights."

"After the first blackmail attempt Regent and his wife told Khoshbakht 'no deal'. They said they were prepared to tell his superiors the whole story. Bina would enter rehab again and they would let the chips fall where they may."

"Gutsy," Lea said. "What happened to change their mind?"

"The next morning, right before he was set to meet with his boss, an envelope of pictures was delivered to Regent's office," Gosnell explained. "His wife Bina is a local. She has a large family including a sister she's very close to who has four small children. The envelope contained pictures of the children sleeping in their beds."

Steve and Catherine winced. They both had an immediate visceral reaction to the thought of receiving pictures like that.

"The message was loud and clear," Gosnell continued. "He could get to Bina's family anytime he wanted. Regent felt like he didn't have any other option. He found a way to get the crates on the planes. He swears no other navy personnel were involved."

"What's going to happen to him now?" Lea asked.

"It's hard to say exactly." Gosnell's mixed emotions were written all over his face. On the one hand Regent had committed a serious offense and needed to be punished accordingly. On the other hand he could see how the man, who had had an exemplary service record to that point, felt trapped and did what he thought he had to do to protect his wife and her family. "He'll definitely be demoted and be brought back stateside immediately. If he cooperates with the investigation and agrees to testify in court there's a good chance he won't be dishonorably discharged. He'll be reassigned and given a chance to continue his service."

Steve nodded. "That's a pretty good deal all things considered."

"Hopefully his wife will get the help she needs," Catherine added.

"We'll see that she does," Gosnell promised. "Regent is going to remain at his post until after you have Khoshbakht in custody to avoid any chance he might get wind of the arrest and not show up for the meeting."

"What about the rest of his organization?" Lea asked. "Will they be taken into custody as well?"

Gosnell shook his head. "Unfortunately not. We're not going to get any cooperation at all from the local government. They're in the pocket of men like Khoshbakht. The best we can hope for is that Khoshbakht's disappearance will create enough temporary chaos that we can force the disbanding of the rest of his organization. At least temporarily. Eventually they'll probably leave town and try to gain a foothold somewhere else. That's just the nature of the game in that part of the world."

"Well at least we'll manage to cripple a major supply line if we can get Ocala and Khoshbakht into custody," Catherine said.

"Speaking of …" Steve looked at his watch. "We have to get going. I want to talk to Willoughby one more time before the meeting to make sure he has everything straight."

* * *

"As soon as you get them to agree on terms we'll move in," Steve said as he reviewed the plan one final time with Lee Willoughby in a small, dingy apartment less than a mile from the scene of the meeting. Catherine, Danny and the rest of the Five-0 team, along with officers from the local DEA and FBI offices, were already in place at various points throughout the warehouse district.

The minute he finished talking to Willoughby, Steve would join them. The entire operation had been planned down to the smallest detail. The LA detective had been drilled on his part at least a dozen times. The listening apparatus were in place. The surveillance team that had picked up Khoshbakht upon his arrival on the island and followed him ever since backed off once Khoshbakht and Ocala arrived at the warehouse, passing the baton to the teams of officers who had been in place for hours already so as not to rouse any suspicion as the meeting time grew closer. Multiple drones were already in the air.

"Don't worry," Willoughby said confidently. "I got this. No way I'm gonna let these guys wiggle off the hook when we're this close to bringing them down."

Steve nodded. He recognized the look in Willoughby's eyes.

Determination.

"Okay then," he extended his hand which Willoughby shook immediately, "Let's do this."

* * *

"I see no problem with acquiring the things you're asking for," Khoshbakht said as he scanned the list Willoughby had provided him. "But if you want this kind of merchandise you need to be prepared to pay top dollar."

"My clients will gladly pay up as long as the merchandise is high quality," Willoughby said, his voice strong and unwavering. He cast a glance at Eddie Ocala who had been standing off to the side mostly silent thus far. He was more than happy to help take Khoshbakht out of circulation, along with the guns and drugs he regularly smuggled into the country, but Ocala was the man he really wanted. The man responsible for his sister's death. As long as this day ended with Ocala behind bars, he didn't really care what happened to anyone else.

"I assure you all my merchandise is high quality." Khoshbakht continued to regard his new customer carefully. He had learned over the years how to tell if a man was lying and he never hesitated to take immediate ruthless action if he believed they were. The man standing in front of him showed no signs of nervousness or deceit.

He smiled to himself. A new crop of rich buyers was exactly what he needed to help build his growing reputation as an arms dealer. It would allow him to move away from the drug trade which was something he'd always found useful but ultimately too untidy for his taste. "I can get you some of everything on this list for …" He pretended to study the paper again. "What would you say to $10 million?"

Willoughby made sure to maintain his stoic expression as he pulled out his phone. "I'd say where should I wire the cash."

One of Khoshbakht's bodyguards handed over a small slip of paper. "You can wire it to this account."

As soon as he heard those words Steve gave the signal and an overwhelming law enforcement presence moved in and arrested both Ocala and Khoshbakht, along with their various foot soldiers, without incident.

"Great work." Steve patted Willoughby on the back as the last of the arrestees were carted off.

Willoughby watched Ocala's retreating form as he was led out of the warehouse in handcuffs. "I'll bet he doesn't even know my sister's name," he spat out.

"Probably not," Steve agreed. Men like Eddie Ocala usually didn't give a second thought to their victims, even the innocent ones. "But you know. And we know."

Willoughby nodded. "Hey, maybe you can do me a favor."

"If I can," Steve replied without hesitation.

"When you're questioning Ocala can you make sure you say my sister's name. I want him to know she played a role in bringing him down."

Steve paused for just a second. "Why don't come with me to question him? You can tell him yourself."

Willoughby's eyes lit up. "Really?"

Steve nodded. "Let's go."

* * *

It took the remainder of Friday and most of the day Saturday to finish processing Ocala and Khoshbakht and to complete their initial questioning. Both men lawyered up fairly early in the process but, unfortunately for them, several of their foot soldiers weren't nearly as loyal. Steve had no doubt they were going to put both men in federal prison for the rest of their lives.

After getting a chance to help question Eddie Ocala, and to invoke his sister's name, Lee Willoughby headed back to Los Angeles to face the music with his superiors for going off on a rogue investigation. He hoped the two high profile arrests, as well as a few words of praise delivered to his boss by the governor of the great state of Hawaii, would soften the blow.

As an exhausted Steve and Catherine made their way across the parking lot to Steve's truck he yawned. "I can't believe we missed Valentine's Day."

"We'll celebrate next week," Catherine smiled softly.

"Are you sure you don't mind?"

She kissed his cheek. "Positive."

"Next week it is then," he grinned as he opened the passenger's side door of his truck. "I guess you could say these arrests were a pretty good present."

"Nice try, Commander," Catherine chuckled. "They were nice, but they won't take the place of chocolate."

Steve closed her door then moved around the front of the truck and hopped into the driver's seat. "As we always say, we may not manage to celebrate exactly on the 14th but that doesn't mean we don't nail the romance thing."

"You can say that again." Catherine's smile lit up her exhausted face. "Now let's go home and see our daughter."

 **THE END**

* * *

 _Find all our stories (in chronological order!) on our website: marirealmcroll dot wixsite dot com backslash real-mcroll_

 _Or in the McRoll in the REAL World community here on fanfiction dot net Find us on Tumblr: mcrollintherealworld dot tumblr dot com_

 _You can join our mailing list by emailing us realmcroll at yahoo dot com with: Add me, please! in the subject line. Or just drop us a line to say hi! We love hearing from our readers._

 _And find me on Twitter asking your opinions on all things McRoll in the REAL World! at Mari21763 and add #REALMcRoller_


End file.
